The Year of Living Dangerously | | Cast : | Mel Gibson, Sigourney Weaver | | Director : | Peter Weir | | Studio : | Warner Studios | | Format : | Color, Closed-captioned | | Released Date : | January 21, 1983 | | DVD Released Date : | February 08, 2005 | | Language : | English (Dubbed), English (Original Language), French (Original Language), French (Subtitled), English (Subtitled) | | Audience Rating : | PG (Parental Guidance Suggested) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | June 28, 2005 | | Summary | The Great Shadow Play | Content
 | "The Year of Living Dangerously" is a film that is felt as well as seen; the steaming heat and stench of the hovel lined streets, the torrential rains, and the confusion and fear of being in the middle of a revolutionary coup become very real on a sensory level. Taking place during the Sukarno regime in 1965 Indonesia, it is also a marvelous love story, and the chemistry between Sigourney Weaver and Mel Gibson is palpable. There are many scenes that are as if we are glimpsing a private, intimate moment, and they are both such a stunningly attractive pair.
Linda Hunt, playing a cross-gender role of a Chinese/Indonesian news photographer, won many Best Supporting Actress awards, among them the Oscar, for her superb performance as Billy. Billy sets the stage for the characters in this political thriller, using the people around him in the same way that he guides the intricate shadow puppets he is so fond of. When Guy Hamilton (Gibson) gets transferred to Jakarta as a reporter for an Australian newspaper, Billy shows him the ropes, making sure he meets beautiful British embassy attaché Jill (Weaver), knowing that love between them will be inevitable.
A brilliant re-teaming of Gibson, director Peter Weir, and cinematographer Russell Boyd, from the 1981 masterpiece "Gallipoli," this is an equally extraordinary film in its own way, and both films are works of art that get better with each viewing. Unfortunately, the recent releases of this film, whether on VHS or DVD, are of inferior quality, and do not have the clarity or color reproduction of an old VHS I used to own. Nevertheless, even a less than perfect transfer is better than nothing, and still worth owning.
Filmed in the Philippines and Australia, it has an atmospheric score by Maurice Jarre, which includes an excerpt from Vangelis' "Opera Sauvage." Total running time is 115 minutes.
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| Rating | | | Date | May 30, 2005 | | Summary | NO stars | Content
| This DVD is why people violate copyright laws.
This movie is UNWATCHABLE to the point of being DEFECTIVE!
It's obviously cut to shreds, sound doesn't match the picture, and THATS only when you can hear or understand it!
Can I return it, even for store credit? NO, of course not!
Next time, I'll beg, borrow or steal it and copy it if it's any good.
The movie and audio industry has been stealing their customer's money for years- to He&$ with copyright laws! |
| Rating | | | Date | May 22, 2005 | | Summary | Technical information on this DVD is WRONG | Content
| This is one of my top 20, desert isle, favorite movies. Gibson, Weaver, Hunt, Weir, composer Maurice Jarre (with a track by Vangelis), are all marvelous. It's an adult romance, with conflicting desires ("All is clouded by desire, Arjuna," Billy recites to Guy), political obligations, and personal ambitions. Add to that, Weir directs this film as if the protagonist is passing through a dream, echoing the film's allusions to the wayang, Indonesian shadow plays, retelling myths as dreamlike performances.
Just bought this disc on closeout at Wal-Mart (unopened, sealed by the manufacturer). Alas, this release is mislabeled by Warner Bros. as containing an English stereo track. FALSE ADVERTISING! The Dolby Digital track is only one channel (as well as a French mono and Spanish mono tracks). Doubly disappointing because the soundtrack, and Jarre's music, were lush and vivid on this film. This DVD release (part number 65068) also states it contains pan 'n scan STANDARD as well as WIDESCREEN versions on the disc. The DVD only has a 16:9 anamorphic widescreen version. This isn't Amazon's fault, but something I will take up with Warner Bros. directly. Buyer beware.... |
| Rating | | | Date | November 23, 2004 | | Summary | Good but not great | Content
| I have watched a lot of dramatic movies, but this one just didn't grip me. One of the things that I found awkward was the 1980's score -it was just too imposing. Also, the visual quality was not that great on the DVD. However, it's still a fair insight into what was going on in Indonesia in 1965. |
| Rating | | | Date | September 22, 2004 | | Summary | No Quality Control | Content
| I picked up this film used after seeing this formerly advertised here new for $17.98. I'm a Peter Weir fan mostly of his Oz period, which I still consider this film. I don't remember from seeing this at a theatre years ago if this DVD has been edited, but the print except for a few blemishes looks good. However-- ignoring the package information-- this film has NOT been transferred with a stereo soundtrack. At least my copy is MONO. PS- where's a widescreen release of "Fearless"??? |
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